By: Conrad Barnet
Attention is the basis of all learning, and excellent attention skills are a critical component of healthy executive function. I am sure most parents would argue it is the skill they wish their kids had more of during the quarantine.
In this blog, I hope to shed some light on attention. Attention is the first word within the A.M.P.E.D.U.P. philosophy of KB Gymnasium. It was carefully selected as our first letter because it is a foundational skill used to further develop the other executive functions within our philosophy. What is attention?
Attention can be categorized as endogenous, exogenous, internal and external . Internal attention is what you create in your mind and your ability to focus on the topic that you have chosen. For example, I want to find a solution to a puzzle, so I sit for an hour to focus on finding an answer to it. On the other hand, there is exogenous or external attention, which is what kids need when they are in school. Will your child pay attention to the teacher even though other students are talking or pass notes? External attention goes through a sequence of steps.
External attention works in the following way. As there is a finite amount of attention that each of us possesses, we go through a selection process for competing tasks. Once a selection is made, the next step is modulation which is how well the task is processed and what other facilities (hearing visual, touch, taste, memory) will be dedicated to completing the task. Attention alone does not guarantee a good outcome. Eat money and money will die. The last step in attention is vigilance, the ability to stay on task for an extended period.
Tasks can move from external to internal as interest or fascination in a topic grows. Learning piano at first requires external attention because instruction is what is guiding the practice. However, when the child is away from both the teacher and piano, they can choose to use there internal attention skills to figure out a new piece of music.
Now that we have addressed external and internal attention, we will now address high versus low load attention and their accompanying requirements. High and low load attention do overlap but are no means synonymous with simple and complex. This is because the amount of attention a task requires can change over time as your proficiency in the prescribed activity increases. For example, when you first start to drive it is a high load task and eventually moves to a low load task where you are able to drive and text. High load tasks will require more of your attention and thus are harder to maintain for an extended period. Did you catch the random sentence in the prior paragraph?
Cognitive scientists, through research, have revealed a few key things about attention that we should all consider. Most of our attention capabilities, it seems, are developed before you exit puberty. Studies have shown that there is a material increase in attention between the ages of 5 and 13 years old and little marginal difference as you move to older peer groups. Between the ages of 5 and 13 there will be specific periods where the growth rate in attention development will vary . Parents who currently have children in elementary and middle school are doing their children a great service by continuously working on attention.
What can a parent do to improve the attention of their child? Attention is a skill and can be improved with time and effort. To help your child improve attention, it is best to limit the number of distractions that are present when they are doing a task that requires a high load. Making the selection process for younger children is important because they have less exogenous attention control. Based on research, it is believed that explaining the importance of a task increases the emotional arousal which will lead to improved attention. Creating a positive mood before, during, and after the task have shown that it improves overall attention. Like adults, mediation, mindfulness, and exercise help with attention skills.
A.M.P.E.D. U.P Challenge
There are games and activities that you can do at home to improve your attention. Below is a couple of my favorite that I think will be fun for the family:
- Simon Says https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simon_Says
- Three to Five Card Monty: Not the game that you cheat at but the version of just moving the cards around.
The above games test speed, accuracy, and focus at the same time. They’re both great ways to get the entire family involved. They can be played over zoom or any other video platform.
Please stay tuned for other blogs where we will dive into other fun games to improve your child’s attention.
Stay A.M.P.E.D. U.P!
